I've Kept My Heart Under Control
by Imarkthehours
Summary: Emily had made herself a promise when Alison was still alive that she wouldn't ever fall in love with one of her friends again. However, when her best friend is Hanna, that promise is hard to keep.
1. Chapter 1: Losing Sleep

**A/N: Set after Emily moves in with Hanna. Slightly AU. You'll have to pretend either that Caleb never came back or that Hanna never took him back when he did come back. Please forgive me for any mistakes, a lot of this was written at ridiculous times of the night/morning. Also, please forgive me if anyone is out of character, this is my first time writing anything for PLL.**

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><p>Emily had made herself a promise when Alison was still alive that she wouldn't ever fall in love with one of her friends again. However, when her best friend is Hanna, that promise is hard to keep.<p>

How could someone stop themselves from loving Hanna? It was an easy thing to do, and despite her insecurities she had guys lining up for a chance to date her. Emily knew it couldn't happen, hence why she loathed that she couldn't stop her feelings from growing, especially since she'd been staying with her - sharing her bed. She had decided that she needed a distraction and so, in an act of desperation, she had decided that distraction could be found in dating Samara.

Emily stared at Hanna's sleeping form through the darkness. Her captivated gaze danced over Hanna's stunning features, as though memorising something imperative.

"You're so beautiful," she whispered into the silence.

"Huh?" Hanna said drowsily, startling Emily.

"I think I'm going to ask Samara out." WHAT? Emily had no idea where that came from; it was the first thing she could think to say. Hanna turned to face Emily fully looking slightly...hurt? No, that couldn't be right. Emily must have been misreading her expression due to the lack of light. Hanna was silent for a moment and Emily wasn't sure she was going to reply.

"You should," she finally said. "She's pretty." Hanna tried to smile encouragingly.

"I won't if you don't want me to, Han."

"Why wouldn't I want you to? You should do whatever makes you happy. We've had this conversation before, Em," Hanna smiled. Emily was hesitant. Hanna didn't seem too thrilled, although it might've been because she had been woken in the middle of the night. Instead of pressing, she changed the subject.

"I'm sorry I woke you," she said apologetically.

"It's okay, Em, you could wake me up in the middle of the night to talk about the weather if you liked. I'd listen," Hanna smiled sleepily, her eyes closed again. Emily beamed at her affectionately.

"I'd listen to you if you decided to talk about _grass_ in the middle of the night," Emily giggled.

"I'm glad it's mutual," Hanna chuckled into her pillow. With that, they each turned their back on each other to sleep, but neither of them did, Hanna awake dreading the thought of Emily dating Samara and Emily running through the possible reasons Hanna hadn't seemed very happy about it.

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><p>The next day, Emily woke up alone in Hanna's bed. Strange, Emily thought, as Hanna usually needed to be pretty much dragged out of bed in the mornings. She made her way downstairs and found Hanna in the kitchen, chewing thoughtfully on a piece of toast.<p>

"You're up early," Emily said in way of a greeting.

"I couldn't sleep," Hanna replied absently.

"I didn't kick you, did I?" Emily said jokingly. Hanna half smiled for a moment and then returned to her distant thoughts.

"No, just, my mind wouldn't shut up."

"Oh. Well, do you want to talk about it?" Emily was concerned. If it was keeping her friend up, then it must be serious.

"No, it's okay. I'm going to go take a shower, okay? " Hanna dismissed the line of questioning and hurriedly left, leaving Emily very confused.

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><p>The ride to school had been quiet. Hanna seemed withdrawn and Emily was worried. She wondered if there was something wrong that Hanna wasn't telling her, or if she had done something to upset her friend. She made a note to ask her about it later as they approached Spencer and Aria at a table in the cafeteria.<p>

"Good morning!" Spencer greeted them as they sat down opposite her.

"Ugh, how can you be so chipper?" Hanna retorted irritably as Emily returned the greeting.

"What's up with you?" Aria questioned, amused.

"Don't mind Sleeping Beauty here. _Somebody_ didn't get enough sleep last night," Emily teased, trying to ease the tension between them. Hanna could see the question in Aria and Spencer's faces, so she interrupted them before they could ask.

"I just drank too much coffee before bed, that's all," Hanna said dismissively. Emily shot Hanna a questioning look that she pretended not to notice.

"Well I slept like a log. It's amazing how well you sleep when you're not being harassed via text message," Spencer joked.

"Don't jinx it," Aria said warningly. As if on cue, Emily's phone buzzed in her hand. Everyone looked at it as though it was about to explode. Emily regarded it tentatively and breathed a sigh of relief.

"It's just Samara," she reassured her friends. Aria and Spencer exchanged looks and smiled at Emily, while Hanna was overcome with an odd sensation of jealousy. She knew the conversation was about to turn to Emily and Samara, and she couldn't listen to it.

"Oh! I totally forgot! I have this thing I have to talk to Mr Riley about before class. I'll see you guys later?" Without waiting for a response, Hanna was out of her seat and across the room before the others could realise she had even spoken.

"Well that was abrupt," Spencer remarked.

"And vague," Aria added. Emily just looked towards the door, wondering why Hanna had so blatantly lied to get away. She didn't even have any classes with Mr Riley. Her phone buzzed again, catching her off guard. She opened the text message and her stomach dropped.

**Hey Em, looks like Hanna has a secret that she doesn't want to share. Doesn't she know how selfish that is? Maybe you could ask her. Shame she's avoiding you –A.**

"Tell me something I don't know," Emily sighed.

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><p>Emily had finally managed to track Hanna down during their joint free period before lunch and Hanna was just about to slip out of sight again when Emily called out to her.<p>

"Hanna! Will you stop and talk to me?"

"What?" Hanna said a little more harshly than she intended and was immediately regretful when she saw the hurt in Emily's face.

"Did I do something wrong?" Emily asked in a small voice. Hanna hated that she had been avoiding Emily, and the way she was looking at her did nothing to ease the guilt.

"No, of course not, Em. I'm just in a weird mood today," Hanna lied reluctantly.

"Is that why you've been avoiding me?" There was fire in Emily's eyes and Hanna wasn't sure if she was scared or excited by it.

"I'm sorry, Em. I didn't mean to upset you. In fact, I was avoiding you so I wouldn't upset you. You know what I'm like when I don't get enough sleep. It's not pretty," Hanna explained, trying to tempt a smile out of the beautiful brunette. It worked and Emily's anger melted away.

"Well, you could've just said so earlier and saved me all this worry."

"You're right. I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you, I promise," Hanna said seriously. "Want to go grab some lunch?" She finished winningly.

"Okay, but you're buying!"

"Deal."


	2. Chapter 2: Living In a Strange World

It was Saturday afternoon and Emily was at The Grille, lost in thought, with Aria patiently sipping her coffee across from her, content to sit in the comfortable silence. Emily had asked Aria to meet her, and Aria had been compliant. She had sensed there was something wrong the day before and thought she could maybe coax Emily into telling her about it. She was patient and knew Emily would tell her what was wrong when she was ready, so she made conversation.

"So are you excited for the big date?" Emily, broken from her reverie, gave Aria a questioning look. She didn't recall telling her about her date with Samara later that night. "Hanna told me," she said sheepishly. Emily gave her a small smile to show her she wasn't mad.

"I guess," she shrugged, in answer to Aria's query. Aria was unperturbed by Emily's lack of enthusiasm.

"Nervous?" She pressed.

"Not really…" Emily paused for a second, wondering whether or not to speak her mind. "I'm not sure I even really want to go," she relented.

"What? Why not?"

"I don't think I really like Samara that much. I think it's just that she reminds me of someone..."

"She doesn't really seem all that similar to Maya," Aria mused, oblivious to Emily's intention.

"No, I meant, looks wise..." Emily wanted to tell Aria about her feelings, but couldn't quite pluck up the courage, so she settled on dropping not-so subtle hints.

"Oh, Em, don't say you still love Ali. I understand it's hard to let her go, but you have to, for your own sake."

"Oh, God, no Aria, it's definitely not about Ali." Emily said and Aria's eyebrows knitted together in puzzlement.

"Then who...?" She trailed off. Her eyes widened and she let out a small gasp. "Em, are you trying to tell me you like Hanna?" Emily stared at her hands, feeling Aria's stare bore into her. "Emily!"

"I think I'm in love with her," Emily blurted out, careful not to look at Aria when she confessed. Aria was staring at her, stunned. Emily ventured a glance towards her. "Please say something," Emily pleaded. Aria seemed to come to her senses.

"Are you going to tell her?" She finally said. Emily was a little taken aback by Aria's question, having expected anger or disapproval.

"You're not mad?"

"Why would I be?"

"I don't know, I just thought, you know, it might be weird for you and Spencer for me to be crushing on one of our best friends."

"Well you liked Ali for all that time and none of us even noticed. Anyway, answer the question."

"No way, I can't. It would ruin our friendship, not to mention I live with her now."

"Well, exactly, you live with her. It's not going to be easy to hide your feelings," Aria reasoned, leaning forward to hear Emily better, who had been speaking quietly to her knees, occasionally glancing back towards Aria.

"I can't just tell her. There's no way she could reciprocate. Plus, Hanna is very much straight."

"Hanna doesn't strike me as the sort of person to let something like sexuality get in her way," Aria laughed. "She was really excited to have you live with her..." She added suggestively, raising her eyebrows and smirking at Emily.

"Don't be silly, she'd be just as happy to have you or Spencer stay."

"I'm not so sure," she replied thoughtfully. "She has always had a soft spot for you, Em. I mean, why did A send those pictures to her over me or Spencer? A seems to know more about us then we do about each other..." Aria seemed to be thinking out loud at this point.

"Aria, please stop, I know you're trying to help, but this is ridiculous. Hanna doesn't see me as anything more than a friend." Emily glanced at the clock and cursed internally. "Listen, I have to go and get ready."

"You're still going on the date?"

"Aria, it's a date, I'm not marrying her. I'm not going to stop living just to chase someone who isn't even interested," Emily sighed dejectedly. Aria smiled sympathetically and covered Emily's hand with her own, encouraging Emily to look her in the eyes when she said her next words.

"Em, I think you should talk to Hanna. She could surprise you."

"Or she could just be really uncomfortable," Emily replied dryly. "I really have to go." Emily rose from her chair and Aria grasped her wrist with a gentle firmness, grabbing Emily's attention once more.

"Just think about it, okay?"

"Okay." With that, Emily was gone and Aria was left alone with her thoughts and time to mull over this new information.

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><p>Hanna had been feeling strange lately. She would be doing something completely ordinary, like homework or shopping, when her mind would be invaded by brown eyes and tanned skin. It would be gone as fast as it came, and she would be left confused. In addition, she'd been having these overwhelming urges around Emily for a while, to brush hair out of her eyes and wrap her arms around her waist. She wasn't an idiot – contrary to popular belief. She knew what it meant, but that didn't mean she was ready to accept it. It wasn't a matter of sexuality; Hanna had grown to be comfortable in the person she was (although it hadn't been without difficulty). It was more about the complexity of falling in love with your best friend. Emily meant the world to Hanna and she wasn't willing to risk losing her over some silly fantasy. She'd managed to keep her in Rosewood after the Texas ordeal; she wasn't going to push her away with this. But living with Emily had only intensified her feelings for her and it was getting harder and harder to control them.<p>

Hanna was pulled from her thoughts by the very person she'd been ruminating about.

"Hellooo?"

"What?" Hanna replied dazedly. She was lounging on her bed, making a feeble attempt at her homework whilst constantly fighting distraction.

"I said," Emily reiterated for Hanna's sake, amused by her friend's confusion, "which one do you prefer?" Emily was holding up two outfits. One was a short, tight black dress that would show off all of Emily's most valuable assets, whilst the other was a pair of black skinny jeans and a blue top with a plunging neckline. Hanna swallowed and almost got lost in thoughts a lot less innocent.

"You look amazing in anything, Em," Hanna said shyly. A slight blush crept along Emily's collarbone at the compliment and Hanna's heart gave a tiny jump.

"Come on, Hanna, you're the fashion expert."

"The dress. Why are you getting all dressed up, anyway?"

"I have a date with Samara, remember?" Emily said quietly, walking into the bathroom to change. Hanna's heart sank. She had forgotten that was tonight.

"Oh..." Before Hanna had too much time to dwell, Emily stepped back into the room and Hanna's jaw dropped.

"How do I look? Emily asked, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear nervously before treating Hanna to a twirl.

"You look… Wow!" Hanna stammered and Emily let out a giggle.

"Thank you," she laughed. "Do you think Samara will like it?" Emily added deliberately. Hanna was staring at her homework as though it would make it finish itself, but she was just desperately trying not to let Emily see she was upset.

"She'd be an idiot not to," Hanna said in a small voice, more to her books than to Emily. Emily thought she sensed a hint of jealousy in Hanna's words, but she knew it was just wishful thinking. It didn't stop her heart from swelling all the same. Hanna had given up on her homework at this point and picked up a nearby magazine to distract herself with. "Just let Samara know, that if she hurts you, I _will_ kill her," Hanna added fiercely. Emily laughed, in reminiscence.

"I was wondering when you would start with the death threats. Not many people would threaten to rip a cop's head off for someone. Although, Spencer and Aria did threaten to destroy Paige..." Emily said teasingly.

"Hey, if I had known about that sooner I would've led the lynch mob, trust me."

Emily shot Hanna an appreciative smile. "I know, Han. You always protect me. That's why I love you."

Hanna tried to hide her blush behind her magazine.


	3. Chapter 3: All I Want Is You

After Emily had left for her date, Hanna had felt too restless and nervous to be alone, so she'd called Spencer to come over. They were strewn across Hanna's bed, doing homework together, but having Spencer there wasn't having the desired effect on Hanna's wandering mind, and she was caught in a daze again, smiling at a daydream, by Spencer. She looked at Hanna, a smirk playing on her lips.

"You're back with Caleb, aren't you?"

Hanna snapped back to reality.

"What? No, I'm not, Spence. I told you, he and I are over."

"Well, you've a vibe about you…" Spencer remarked thoughtfully. Hanna tried very hard not to look suspicious and a light bulb went off in Spencer's head. "You like someone!" She gasped, giving Hanna a very stern why-didn't-you-tell-me look. Hanna averted her gaze and took a sudden, intense interest in her nails.

"It's nothing. I'm not going to tell them or anything..." She mumbled.

"Why not?"

"Because it's not somebody I'm willing to lose if it doesn't work out. Plus, I don't even know if they like me back."

Spencer was still adamant and began guessing.

"It's not Lucas, is it? I thought you only liked him as a friend. Did you change your mind?"

"I did, but not about him. This is someone far more important."

Spencer simply looked at Hanna for a moment and something like knowing flashed in her eyes.

"Oh my God!" Spencer exclaimed, a huge grin breaking across her face. "You're totally in love with Emily! That's why you were acting so weird the other day."

Hanna didn't even think to deny it, somewhat relieved that someone else knew.

"Spencer, please don't say anything! I know I shouldn't and I'm not going to act on my feelings, there's no way I could put our friendship on the line like that. I'm just going to try and forget all about it."

"Honey, she's sleeping in your bed, that is not going to work. How did I not see this before? It makes so much sense in hindsight... I mean, you're always so protective over her, and you were so excited to have her stay. I can't say I never had my suspicions, but I never thought they were founded..."

"Do you think you could stop with the soliloquy and help me?"

"Actually, that was more of a monologue; I was talking to you, not myself. Although I'm impressed that you know the word soliloquy..."

"SPENCER!"

"Okay, okay. Listen, Hanna, this is Emily we're talking about here. There's no way she's going to stop being friends with you over this. She's not going to blow you off, what with how she felt about Ali."

"That was very encouraging, thank you," Hanna grumbled sarcastically.

"It could be if you let me finish. Look, Em loves you. It's obvious. You were somehow more conspicuous, but it's still pretty clear how you guys feel about each other. Hanna, you should tell her. Take your own advice and be with someone who makes you happy. It doesn't matter who." Spencer finished with a kind smile and Hanna gnawed on her bottom lip contemplatively.

"What if she doesn't feel the same way?" She questioned in a tiny voice.

"What if she does?" Spencer countered.

"This isn't a game! This could ruin my friendship with her," Hanna sighed. "I can't lose her, Spence," she finished sadly. Spencer gave her a sympathetic smile.

"I'll tell you what, I could always do some digging, ask her about you, drop some hints; all very subtle, of course."

"I'm not sure that's a good idea. How can you be subtle about that? "My, isn't Hanna stunning today?""

"Don't be so vain, Han." Hanna threw her hands up in exasperation. "Okay, it may not be my best plan, but do you have a better one, since you refuse to just tell her?" Hanna shook her head resignedly. "Well, there we are then, I'll invite Emily over tomorrow and start investigating." Spencer winked at Hanna, who rolled her eyes and went back to her homework.

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><p>Spencer had invited Emily to her house the next evening to "hang out and watch a movie" and when she arrived she'd barely sat down before the questioning began.<p>

"So, how was it?" Spencer pried, putting a bowl of popcorn on the table in front of them.

"It was nice," Emily said, feigning enthusiasm, "we had dinner and then took a night walk through the park."

"Did you kiss her?"

"No."

"How come?"

Because I couldn't stop thinking about Hanna, Emily thought.

"Can we talk about something else?" Spencer gave her a strange look. "I don't want to jinx it," she added, realising how unenthused she sounded.

"Okay. Do you have your eye on anyone at the moment?" Spencer asked pryingly.

"Well, I'm dating Samara, so…" Emily slowly, as though explaining it to a child.

"Anyone else, I mean. It's not like you two are exclusive, right?"

Emily just shrugged in response and busied herself with watching the movie Spencer had put on but seemed to be ignoring. Spencer was running out of ideas. Getting someone to confess their love was a lot easier said than done and she could practically hear an echo of Hanna's voice from lunch that day telling her it wasn't going to work – they had met up to discuss the situation, although Hanna wasn't any more optimistic so Spencer had very little to work with.

"Don't you think Hanna looked pretty today?" Spencer persisted in what she thought was an innocent tone. She winced at how obvious it was, and could almost see Hanna rolling her eyes and shaking her head at her last resort.

"Sure, Hanna always looks pretty," Emily replied, unflustered by the sudden change of subject. Spencer smiled at how easily Emily had complimented Hanna when she wasn't even around to hear.

"I know, but like, today she was just at a whole new level, don't you think?" Spencer was almost ashamed of how little tact she seemed to have at this moment in time and would've face palmed if it wouldn't have given her away, but it was too late; Emily was officially suspicious.

"Is there something you want to talk to me about, Spence? You're not questioning your sexuality, are you?" Emily joked. Spencer was stunned for a moment, staring open mouthed at Emily before letting out a nervous laugh.

"No, of course not, Em. I just wondered if you'd noticed Hanna today, that's all…"

Spencer was acting really weird. Weirder than usual and Emily was having a hard time ignoring it.

"Has Aria said something to you?" Emily said directly. It was Spencer's turn to be confused.

"About you?" Emily nodded. "No, of course not."

"Well, what's with all the questions?"

"I was just curious." Spencer tried unsuccessfully to shrug it off nonchalantly

"Well I would prefer if you were a little more straightforward with your curiosity. If there's something you want to know, just ask!" Emily was quite annoyed at this point. Spencer sighed. She was caught. She thought she would be much better at this, but she supposed there wasn't really a subtle way to ask someone if they were in love with one of their best friends. It was best to just come out and say it.

"Fine. Do you like Hanna?"

"Of course I like Hanna, she's my best friend. Why? Does she think I'm mad at her or something?"

"No, I mean, do you _like_ her?" Spencer said, raising her eyebrows deliberately to try and show Emily what she meant. Emily didn't answer; she merely looked away and wrung her hands worriedly. That was enough of an answer for Spencer. "It's okay if you do, Em. Aria and I are there for you guys, no matter what."

There was a long moment of quiet between them, only the sound of the movie softly running in the background breaking through the silence, before Emily nervously spoke.

"What should I do?"

"You should tell her!" Spencer insisted.

"I don't think I can. What if it freaks her out?"

"Emily, trust me. Tell her," Spencer said in a tone that told Emily there was no point in arguing. With that, the conversation was over and the girls finally – Emily rather reluctantly - paid attention to the movie.


	4. Chapter 4: Kiss Me Slowly

Monday lunchtime found Spencer sitting in the cafeteria, watching Hanna and Emily flirting shamelessly. She grinned at the fact that she was pretty sure neither of them realised they were doing it. Thinking about it, Spencer realised they had done that a lot in the past.

Aria sat down next to Spencer, leaned across to her and murmured, "Emily is totally in love with Hanna."

"They're painfully obvious, right?" Spencer replied quietly, mistaking Aria's revelation for commentary on the current situation.

"Yeah, well, that and Emily outright told me." Aria said seriously. Spencer whipped her head around to look at her.

"You knew?" She asked disbelievingly. Aria nodded. "Well, you could've told me before I made an idiot of myself yesterday trying to find out if Emily liked Hanna back," Spencer huffed.

"Hanna likes Emily?" Aria asked hopefully.

"Try loves her. You didn't know?"

"Well, I hoped, for Emily's sake, but I didn't_ know_."

"So they both love each other, but don't know that it's mutual," Spencer half laughed, shaking her head.

"How can they not? Look at them." Aria said turning to witness the obvious look of affection Hanna and Emily were subconsciously sharing as they conversed quietly. Hanna and Emily might as well have been making out in front of everyone with the way they were looking at each other, in a way that they both seemed to think was subtle.

"Some people can't see what's right in front of them," Spencer said ruefully.

"Should we tell them?"

"No, this is something they should do on their own. We just need to keep them moving in the right direction." However, Spencer was still going to have a little fun with them. She turned her full attention to them, a playful grin on her face. "You two realise that you may as well be tonguing each other, right?"

Hanna shot Spencer an angry look and Emily looked down and blushed furiously. Aria tried to hold in her snickers and Spencer didn't even attempt to disguise her amusement. She realised that this is probably how a parent feels when they embarrass their children.

"Gross, Spence!" Hanna grimaced. Emily looked at Hanna like a kicked puppy, clearly upset by Hanna's negative reaction. "Oh, Em, I didn't mean it like that!" Hanna reassured her, caressing her arm unconsciously in a effective attempt at comfort. "It's just the way Spencer put it."

"Tonguing is a pretty gross word," Emily smiled, watching Hanna's hand move mindlessly up and down her arm, finally finding home at her wrist. Spencer and Aria exchanged a satisfied look when neither Hanna nor Emily made to move it. Aria decided it was her turn to chip in, albeit a little less vulgarly than Spencer had.

"Seriously, though, you two would make a cute couple" she said and Emily gave her an almost scary what-do-you-think-you're-doing look.

Hanna opened her mouth to reply but was cut short by the sound of the bell. "Oh crap," Hanna groaned as they all got up to go to class.

Spencer and Aria didn't miss the look Emily and Hanna exchanged when they went their separate ways.

* * *

><p>Later that day Spencer was approached at her locker by Hanna. She opened her mouth to greet her but Hanna cut her off furiously.<p>

"What the hell was that at lunch?" She demanded.

"Well, hello to you, too" Spencer quipped in reply, closing her locker and turning to face Hanna.

"Don't act innocent, Spencer, I know exactly what you were doing and it wasn't funny."

"I'm sorry; I was just trying to help."

"Well, don't." Hanna huffed with a slight frown.

"Emily didn't seem to mind," Spencer smirked.

"That's because Emily is too nice to say anything." Hanna responded.

"Why aren't you mad at Aria? She wasn't exactly subtle either."

"Because she's not here. Trust me, she's not getting off easy either."

Aria, oblivious to Hanna's anger, arrived beside her at this moment.

"Hey guys," she said carefully, noticing the way Hanna was looking at Spencer.

"Well, speak of the devil. Go ahead, Han, let her have it," Spencer prompted, thoroughly amused.

"Let me have what?" Aria asked, alarmed, looking hopelessly at Spencer for help. Hanna turned on her in a blur of blonde curls.

"And you!" Hanna faltered on a realisation. "...Wait, how did you even _know_?"

"Know what?" Aria said, moving beside Spencer as if she were some sort of shelter that could protect her from the blast of Hanna's rage.

"About her and Emily," Spencer pitched in.

"Oh. Well, you guys are kinda obvious. And Spencer told me."

"SPENCER!" Hanna reprimanded her.

"Sorry," Spencer said apologetically, "but she was going to find out sooner or later."

"It's true, I mean, after Emily- Ouch!" Aria was stopped abruptly at Spencer's elbow colliding with her ribs, followed by a pointed look. Hanna didn't miss this.

"After Emily what?" She looked between the two, waiting for their answer. Aria grimaced and Spencer sighed before conceding.

"Listen, we promised to let things run their course, so, just... ask Emily about her date, okay. I tried to speak to her about it and I feel like she was lying about it. Maybe she'll open up to you."

"Why would I torture myself like that?" Hanna sniped, still somewhat annoyed.

Aria and Spencer gave Hanna a sympathetic look and Aria said "Just trust us, Han."

"Do you guys know something?" Hanna asked, half suspiciously, half helplessly.

"Nothing we're telling you. We're not interfering," Aria said with a tone of finality.

"We're just… keeping things going in the right direction," Spencer hinted surreptitiously, earning a scowl from Hanna. She spared them one last suspicious look, trying to stifle the growing hope in her chest, before turning and heading off to her locker without pausing for any goodbyes.

* * *

><p>An hour later, Hanna and Emily arrived home and made their way to Hanna's room, dumping their bags by her bedroom door. Hanna thought about what Spencer had said to her earlier that day and decided that now was a good a time as any.<p>

"You never did tell me how your date went," Hanna stated, sinking down onto her couch. Emily was at Hanna's desk, fiddling with the various items that sat on it.

"I wasn't sure you'd want to know..." she said to a bottle of Hanna's moisturiser.

"Why wouldn't I?"

"You just didn't seem very enthusiastic about it when I told you."

"I can't be too thrilled if you keep telling me this stuff when I'm sleeping," Hanna laughed, letting Emily know she was joking. "Seriously, tell me about it."

Hanna felt like a masochist, asking for details on Emily's date. Spencer had better have been right about this, she thought.

"It was fine," Emily said reluctantly, shuffling nervously. Hanna raised her eyebrows incredulously, waiting for Emily to continue.

"Fine? That's all you're going to give me?" She questioned when Emily didn't continue.

Emily bit her lip gently and relented. "It was horrible"

"What?"

Emily paused, building her resolve. It was time to tell the truth.

"I don't really like Samara in that way," she sighed. "I felt so guilty using her like that. I thought the relief of having a distraction would be enough to drown that out, but I just felt terrible the whole time."

"Distraction? From what?" Hanna questioned, but Emily carried on, growing hysterical.

"I couldn't even look at her properly! The whole night I was just imagining she was someone else. It's like if I didn't look at her directly I could pretend..." Emily trailed off apprehensively, once again unsure of whether to tell Hanna.

"Pretend what, Em?" Hanna prompted her gently, heart hammering hard against her rib cage, conflicted by growing hope and a familiar fear creeping in. She rose from her seat and took a slow step towards her. Emily took in a shaky breath.

"I could pretend... that she was you..." Emily confessed, looking her in the eyes with a look of fear that Hanna recognised as the same one that had been stirring in her own chest. Emily stood still as a stone, watching Hanna carefully, waiting nervously for her response. The room had been filled by a stunned silence and Hanna couldn't quite get her words out, despite having practiced them in her mind countless times. Words failing her, she responded by closing the distance between them, wrapping her arms around Emily's neck and bringing their lips together an intoxicating swirl of emotion. Emily kissed Hanna back sweetly, resting her hands on Hanna's hips to pull her impossibly closer. She sighed contently, relaxing at last, as Hanna slid her tongue lightly over her own and tangled her fingers in Emily's thick, dark hair. Finally, they broke apart, panting slightly and grinning uncontrollably at each other.

Hanna found her voice at last.

"I should have told you sooner," she said breathlessly.

"I was just thinking the same thing," Emily chuckled, intertwining their hands and pulling Hanna back in.


	5. Chapter 5: You and Me

**A/N: I'm afraid this is going to be the last chapter of this story, mostly because I'm back at school and I will have absolutely no time to update it and I don't want to leave you guys waiting weeks at a time for updates. However, that's not to say I won't write a sequel or companion piece or something when things calm down. Thanks to everybody who favourited and reviewed, I hope you all enjoyed it =]**

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><p>Hanna and Emily were lying on her bed, Hanna's head on Emily's shoulder, hands intertwined, quietly taking in their new situation.<p>

"Aria and Spencer are going to tease us so much," Emily laughed.

"I can't believe they both knew we liked each other and wouldn't tell us," Hanna huffed and Emily chuckled, admiring how adorable Hanna was when she pouted.

"I think they just didn't want to force us together," Emily mused, to which Hanna hummed in agreement as they both grew quiet again.

"Oh God, what about my mom?" Hanna exclaimed suddenly. Emily paused thoughtfully.

"She's been really great to me, Han. I think she'll be supportive. But maybe we should wait a few days before we tell her, she said no girlfriends in the bedroom. It might be awkward if she makes you sleep downstairs on the couch," Emily joked.

Hanna slapped Emily's arm playfully. "Why do I get delegated to the couch? This is my room."

"Because, she said that I wasn't allowed girlfriends in here. She only said that you couldn't have boyfriends." Emily explained matter-of-factly, mocha eyes twinkling.

"Your logic is flawless," Hanna replied sarcastically, before breaking into a smile.

"Are we going to tell people, though? Like, at school and stuff?" Emily asked timidly.

"Of course we are. I'm not ashamed of us," Hanna reassured her, leaning up to kiss the worried look off Emily's face.

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><p>Hanna and Emily walked into school hand in hand the next day.<p>

"There's Aria and Spencer. You ready?" Hanna inquired. Emily nodded and Hanna began moving towards them, but was stopped when Emily didn't move. She'd been struck with an idea and a smirk played on her lips.

"Wait," she said and Hanna looked at her questioningly. "I've got a better idea. Want to get back at them for not telling us about how we felt?"

"Hell yes," Hanna said, a mischievous look on her face.

"Follow my lead," Emily said, whispering the plan into a giggling Hanna's ear before striding towards the table Spencer and Aria inhabited, Hanna hot on her heels.

When she reached the table, she threw her bag down on it and sat down in a huff, glaring at Hanna.

"I can't believe you would do this!" she said to Hanna with mock anger as she sat down opposite her. Hanna caught on and jumped in, replying vaguely, allowing Emily to take the lead.

"I said I was sorry, what more do you want?" Spencer and Aria had ceased their conversation and were looking between Emily and Hanna, shocked, wondering what was going on. Emily fake scoffed.

"Seriously, does our friendship mean nothing to you? We're supposed to be best friends!"

Hanna opened her mouth to retort when she was cut off by a very confused Spencer.

"Whoa! Guys, what is going _on_?" Spencer questioned authoritively.

"Ask Judas here," Emily said.

"Oh please!" Hanna retorted.

"Seriously, guys, what's the problem?" Aria asked. She and Spencer were sharing nervous looks, watching Hanna and Emily worriedly.. Hanna and Emily ignored them and carried on their pretend fight, working very hard not to laugh and break the illusion.

"Hanna, you promised me," Emily said, a convincing look of hurt on her face. "I can't believe you would go behind my back like that! I had claim on the last pop tart and you know it."

Hanna nearly burst out laughing at Spencer and Aria's faces at the revelation of the argument's subject.

"Wait, really?" Spencer said to no one in particular.

"You guys are fighting over breakfast? We were worried it was something important!" Aria chastised them.

"It is important. She knows I called dibs on it and she promised me that she wouldn't eat it, but I caught her red handed!"

Hanna couldn't keep it up anymore. She burst into laughter at the bewildered looks on Spencer and Aria's faces. Emily took one look at them and joined in too, and the couple shared a look of triumph over tricking their friends.

"They were messing with us!" Spencer exclaimed disbelievingly.

"I can't believe you two!" Aria said. "I thought you guys were seriously about to come to blows."

"Well, that's what you get for keeping something so important from us." Hanna said with a playful smirk.

Aria and Spencer perked up at this.

"Wait, does this mean...?" Spencer asked.

Hanna and Emily simply nodded, reaching across the table for each other's hands. Spencer and Aria broke into huge smiles, babbling excitedly, bombarding them with questions – were they a couple now? How had it happened? What had the kiss been like?

By the time they had finished answering their questions, they were all grinning happily.

"Well, I'm glad you two are finally together," Spencer said.

"Yeah, we're really happy for you both," Aria added sincerely.

"Thanks, you guys," Emily replied. Then, her smile faltered at a horrible thought. "Oh God," she said, turning to Hanna. "What if A tries to mess us up?"

"That bitch isn't going to come between us, Em. If she tries anything, we can handle it together," Hanna said comfortingly. Emily just smiled and leaned forward, kissing her quickly.

"Awww!" Aria and Spencer cooed in unison.

"You guys are on the verge of enjoying this too much," Hanna laughed, causing Emily to giggle softly as Spencer and Aria made mocking kissy faces at each other.

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><p>Hanna came downstairs to the sounds of cooking that Saturday morning. Making her way into the kitchen, she found Emily making pancakes, back to her. It was phenomenal to Hanna how amazing Emily could look in a t-shirt and sweats. She sneaked up behind her, sliding her arms around her waist, startling her.<p>

"Hanna, you scared me," she said breathlessly, a hint of laughter in her voice.

"Sorry, I couldn't contain myself. I woke up and you weren't there." Emily was suspiciously quiet. "Those are for my mom, aren't they?" Hanna accused. Emily tried to look innocent. "Emily! You don't have to soften her up, you know. You said yourself, my mom is supportive." Hanna said, moving to the island counter.

"Who's softening me up for what?" Ashley Marin said, coming through the doorway and heading for the coffee machine. Hanna and Emily glanced at each other, looking unnecessarily guilty. Ashley turned to them and laughed. "Gosh, you two look like you've been caught planning a bank heist. What's going on?"

"Nothing. Emily made breakfast!" Hanna said quickly, trying to distract her mom's attention.

"Excellent. Maybe I really will trade you in for her," Hanna's mom joked and Hanna pretended to be offended.

"Well, that's charming" she said as Ashley went to sit down. Emily turned around with two plates of pancakes to take to the table, and on her way leaned close to Hanna's ear.

"Don't worry," she whispered. "I wouldn't trade you for anything." This caused Hanna to blush furiously, bursting into a huge grin. She had to bite her lip and turn away so her mom wouldn't wonder what she was smiling about. She picked up the third plate and joined her mom and Emily at the table.

When they had finished eating, Ashley excused herself to get ready for work. When she left the room, Hanna turned to Emily and kissed her sweetly.

"I wouldn't trade you for anything either," Hanna purred into the short space between them and Emily smiled into another lingering kiss.

They were interrupted by Ashley clearing her throat. They jumped apart instantly, both looking terrified at Hanna's mom, whose expression was unreadable.

"I just came back for my phone..." Ashley said, reaching for her abandoned phone on the table and turning her attention to the girls, raising her eyebrows.

"Mom, we can explain," Hanna said hurriedly.

"Go ahead," Ashley said calmly.

"Emily and I are together," Hanna revealed, reaching blindly for Emily's hand, which she clasped tightly.

"How long?"

"We've both liked each other for a long time but neither of us knew. We've only been together for a few days. We were going to tell you sooner…" Hanna trailed off when Ashley simply smiled.

"Well, obviously we're going have to establish some rules," she said. "Seeing as the spare room still isn't ready, I can't really tell you two you can't share a room, so I'll be enforcing an open door rule. Maybe one of you should sleep on Hanna's couch instead of sharing the bed…"

Hanna opened her mouth to negotiate, but Emily stopped her with a hand on her arm and said "That's absolutely fair, Ms Marin."

Ashley nodded her head. "Okay then, well, I have to get going. We'll discuss this more later. You two behave yourselves," she winked and turned, leaving them alone.

"Well that went well," Emily said.

"Open door rule? What are we, twelve?" Hanna scoffed.

"It's fair, Han. I mean, she could've kicked me out for corrupting you," Emily laughed.

"Oh please, I'm the one doing all the corrupting here," Hanna smirked.

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><p>That evening, after a long day of window shopping at the mall, Hanna and Emily came home to dinner with Hanna's mom, during which Ashley joked that if Emily hurt her daughter she had better move further away than Texas. Emily laughed along, but secretly thought that Ashley was only half joking. She was glad that Hanna had such a protective and supportive mom. She was amazed at how Ashley had taken everything in her stride and seemed absolutely comfortable with her daughter dating Emily. She reassured Ashley that she would rather take on the broncos at a rodeo than hurt Hanna, who was fighting to hide the smile on her face. After a few hours of chatting and joking, Hanna and Emily said goodnight to Ashley and made their way up to bed, exhausted from their long day.<p>

They made sure Ashley saw that they were separated, Emily on the couch and Hanna in her bed when she passed by to her own room. However, when they heard her bedroom door click down the hall, Hanna beckoned Emily over, who sneaked silently across the room, sliding in beside Hanna gracefully and wrapping her arms around her waist from behind.

"My mom really seems to be fine with us," Hanna said contently. "I was worried that she was going to decide that she disapproved. Not that that would stop me," Hanna added mischievously.

"I told you it would be okay," Emily said and Hanna hummed softly in reply.

They were quiet then and as Emily was sinking into sleep, Hanna shifted to face her.

"I'm glad you didn't go to Texas, Em," Hanna said quietly through the darkness.

"Me too, Han."

Hanna tangled her and Emily's hands and pulled them to her chest.

"I don't know what I'd do without you."

"I love you, Hanna."

"I love you, too, Em." Hanna replied, elated. Pulling Emily closer and resting her head on her shoulder, Hanna drifted off into a peaceful sleep, welcoming dreams of the gorgeous girl beside her.


End file.
